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Dick Grayson
History (Submitted by Oracle) Dick Grayson: 1986 - 1998 Richard "Dick" Grayson was the only child of professional acrobats, John and Mary Grayson, better known as the "Flying Graysons". Dick was born on the first day of spring in 1986 while Haly's Circus was in Keystone City. A red-breasted bird perched on the window sill as Dick took his first nap; and for that, Mary Grayson would always call Dick her "little Robin". Dick's first memory was that of being sat on a training trapeze and pushed by his mother into the arms of his father. The thrill of soaring through the air never left him, and he trained as an acrobat like his parents for the remainder of his childhood. When he was eight, he became a regular part of their act. Newspapers remarked that the addition of this "Boy Wonder" was the highlight of the show. When Dick was twelve, Haly's Circus came to Gotham. A new crime lord named Tony Zucco attended a special performance of the Flying Graysons during an "Elect Dent" fundraiser event. Zucco tried to shake down Jack Haly, the owner of Haly's Circus, wanting him to pay Zucco protection money for the duration of their stay in Gotham. Dick overheard Mr. Haly's refusal and later that night, Dick watched in horror as the high wire snapped, sending Dick's parents to their deaths in front of Gotham's rich and powerful. Shortly after the tragedy, Dick was placed in the juvenile services system, on the grounds that Social Services was full at the time and his family were not Gotham residents. Dick got beaten up by a number of the juvenile inmates, and later sent to a Catholic orphanage. The fundraiser's sponsor, Bruce Wayne, rescued Dick by adopting him as his ward with some arrangements made by Bruce's girlfriend at the time, Silver St. Cloud. By all reports, the relationship between Dick and Mr. Wayne was rocky at first. Dick felt as though Bruce was trying to replace his father, and Bruce felt as though Alfred had convinced him to do something that was not in the boy's best interests. Of course, when Dick overheard Bruce arguing with Alfred, Dick's young mind heard it as Bruce not wanting Dick around at all. After confronting Bruce and Alfred about what he heard and the heated argument that followed Dick stormed off to the basement. Upset, Dick trashed the room that used to be Bruce's private antique vault. By the time Alfred found him, Dick had not only destroyed several priceless pieces, but also had discovered one of the secret elevators to the Batcave. After Dick discovered the Batcave, he tormented Bruce to train him to become the "Dark Squire" to Bruce's Dark Knight, Bruce initially refused. Alfred and Silver St. Cloud helped Bruce realize that Dick had the same drive for justice that compelled Bruce to take on the role of Batman. So, after some consideration, he offered to train Dick and make him a partner. After a grueling year of intense training with Bruce and Alfred, Dick was ready to don a mask and take his place at Batman's side as a different sort of Boy Wonder.Oracle Files: Dick Grayson (1/5) Robin: 1998 - 2004 Dick actually designed his iconic costume. Both Bruce and Alfred were uncertain of Dick's approach, but Dick assured them his brightly colored suit would be highly maneuverable to make full use of his acrobatic training and would allow him to jump into the fray first as a decoy, enabling Batman an easier approach through the shadows for maximum tactical effect. Still, Alfred insisted the torso of the suit be armored and Bruce agreed. When Harold Allnut finished the final piece to Dick's costume, the red breasted armor, Bruce pointed out that 'Batboy' wasn't a fitting name for such a colorful suit. That's when Dick told Bruce that he wouldn't be 'Batboy', but would instead be called 'Robin'. Bruce was not sold on the name, but Alfred talked him into trying it out. Batman and Robin worked together for a short time before I crashed their party. Dick and I initially had our ups and downs. He was insanely obnoxious back then but we overcame that hurdle in time. Together with Batman as our chaperone, we foiled many a villainous plot and were even junior members of what Barry and Dick had dubbed the "Super Friends". Shortly after the Justice League of America was founded, we even got to be the first two members of the Titans with Beast Boy joining us at our new clubhouse. By the time Cyborg and Raven joined the Titans, Dick had grown into a capable crime-fighter in his own right and the ideal choice to be our leader. As the leader of the Titans, Dick proved himself to be fair and quick-thinking, and a complete man-whore! (Breathe, Barbara, breathe). It's okay. I'm over it now... but Dick and I got to join Bruce and J'onn on a mission to the Yucatan Peninsula and while there, Dick decided to make out with some alien bim- No... I'm over this. Anyway, I justifiably threw a hissy-fit and I decided not to hang out at the Tower much that summer and as a consequence, just as I was recognizing I had a crush on Dick, he was getting cozy with Koriand'r. Of course, when Dick could be bothered to be pulled away from those Tamaranean lips, the Titans had an eventful first summer. Their podcast (which I helped start) took off, they became pop stars with the release of a catchy little jingle that Victor and I wrote, and they saved the world from a demonic warlord (I may have helped them with that last one, too). But Dick gave up on all of that when I was shot, coming back to Gotham to sit at my bedside by day and chase the Joker by night. When they finally caught the Joker, however, Dick wanted the Joker to pay with his life. Batman thought better of it and stopped himself and also Robin from giving into the primal urge for vengeance. After that, Dick spent more time with the Titans than with Bruce. What time he did spend working with Batman was volatile and after Harvey Dent made a derogatory comment about me, Dick lost his cool and beat Two-Face so bad the left side of his face was the 'good side' for a week or two. Once again, Batman stopped Robin from going too far and in the heat of the moment, Robin lashed out and floored Bruce with a right hook. Bruce would later describe that punch as the hardest blow he's ever had to take (considering that he's been on the receiving end of Clark Kent's punches once or twice, I'm inclined to believe Bruce was speaking metaphorically). By the time Bruce got back home, Dick had packed his bags and moved out. Nightwing: 2004 - 2008 Dick got a job in the Blüdhaven Police Department. Dick won't admit it, even to this day, but I know the reason he did this was that he and Bruce had talked about having Dick go undercover in the Blüdhaven Police Department to help rid that department of its corruption as a way of laying groundwork for Dick to become the Batman of Blüdhaven once he was of age, sort of a way of franchising Batman out in a way, a prototype plan that Bruce would eventually revisit with his Batman, Incorporated scheme years later. Dick didn't talk to Bruce until I woke up from my coma. After seeing what my injury had done to the men in my life (Dick, Bruce, and my dad), I decided that I had some work to do. For Dick, I helped him realize that he could still be the Batman of Blüdhaven, without being a Batman. I then had Clark tell Dick a story about a Kryptonian folk hero that I had discovered while helping Clark and Kara unlock a database in the Fortress of Solitude. That story inspired Dick to take the name 'Nightwing' and returned him to crime-fighting. After kicking in the teeth of Blüdhaven baddies for a few months, Dick finally vented enough steam that he and Bruce could move past their differences and Dick was able to give Bruce's newest apprentice, Jason Todd, his approval to bear the name Robin. In his own way of thanking me for my assistance in getting Nightwing started, Dick talked Bruce into letting me help out in the Batcave. After that, Dick went on a couple more missions with the Titans as Nightwing. The Titans' encounter with Deathstroke put new team member Terra in the ground and Dick blamed himself, believing he was no longer cut out to be the team's leader. He moved out of the Tower and decided to commit himself to making Nightwing the sworn defender of Blüdhaven. With the Titans crumbling, the JLA decided to recruit them into their ranks and Dick was nominated for membership in the Justice League of America by Bruce. Dick didn't want to accept it, but I talked him into it as he could do more as a member of the JLA than he could ever do solo. Still, it was a bittersweet moment as the JLA induction was held on the same day as Terra's memorial. Dick spent that night in Blüdhaven, hoping to crack skulls and clear his head. I reached out to him, wanting to tell him what I had known for several years at that point, but Starfire had need of him so both of our plans got derailed once more by that alien. Oh, well. After shacking up with her one more time, Starfire used her new JLA credentials to steal J'onn's bio-ship and get off this rock, returning to her homeworld. Yeah, so Dick took that news pretty hard, but I was there to comfort him... or at least, I tried to be but Dick was more or less all emo-y and too much like Bruce to realize he was entitled to have happiness in his life. Anyway, Dick's concerns about joining the JLA turned out to not be that big of a deal as the JLA disbanded shortly after Dick joined its ranks, leaving Dick to spend more time in Blüdhaven, but also in Gotham as one of Batman's greatest allies. In October of 2006, Jason Todd was kidnapped and tortured over live video feed by the Joker. Batman called a sort of 'all hands on deck' alarm in the hero community, and Dick was among the first to respond. For days, Dick wore himself thin and used up every resource or favor at his disposal, but all for naught. This experience also brought back a lot of painful memories for Dick and he did his best to resist the urge to take out his rage on criminals, but his 'best' included helping Helena put Roman Sionis in the hospital. The night Jason was killed on video, Dick put a hole in my apartment's dry-wall but after that, he was the one who was able to comfort me when I absolutely lost it and broke down over my inability to locate the broadcast's source. Dick was there for me. I will never forget that moment... It was our first time in a long time, it was the first time I told him I loved him (not that he would remember my uttered words among all the other sounds we made that night). That was also the night that I had the idea to become Oracle. The idea came to me while Dick slept beside me and I lay staring at the ceiling in disbelief of everything that had happened. After our get together, Dick and I were awkward for a spell and in that time, Dick entertained a brief romance with the magician Zatanna but ultimately their fling was short-lived and the time spent with her just made Dick realize that Zatanna may know magic, but what he and I had was magical! (Wow, Babs... scale it down a notch) Ultimately, Dick came to this realization when I was hospitalized during the Cataclysm. Dick had to spend five nights of enduring the initial outbreak and confusion of what was essentially a war-torn Gotham to even find me after I had been taken to the GCPD enclave for treatment by my father who had managed to find me two days after the earthquake, nearly on the verge of death amidst the rubble of what used to be my apartment. After finding me, Dick did me a favor and braved the ruins of my old apartment to dig my old costume and other Bat-gear from the rubble to protect my secret identity. Seeing as he was now stuck in Gotham, Dick stuck around the GCPD enclave to help his fellow brothers in blue. Eventually, when there was a complication with my injury, Dick put on his Nightwing disguise to offer his services to my father in order to smuggle me out of Gotham. In doing so, he had to get through Killer Croc and Scarecrow who had been recruited by Copperhead to help guard the sewers and tunnels. Once we got to Wayne Manor and learned what had happened to Bruce after his encounter with Bane, I talked Dick into doing something he swore he never would do... Batman: 2008 - 2009 So let's recap, Dick first donned the cape and cowl of the Dark Knight in Gotham's darkest hour. Gotham had been hit by a massive terrorist attack and the city had been declared a "No Man’s Land" by the U.S. Government. To make matters worse, Batman had nearly been killed by a specialized band of the League of Assassins that had put in place to neutralize Batman in their attempt to wipe Gotham off the map. While Bruce was recuperating, I helped Dick Grayson realize that the city needed hope in a way that only its Caped Crusader could bring. Even though it took days, Alfred, Dick, Harold, and Tim managed to gain access to the Batcave and once inside, Harold made the necessary modifications to one of Bruce's older suits so that Dick could utilize it. Once that was done, Dick insisted on one more thing before becoming Batman... He needed a Robin. Even though Tim was only partially through his training regimen, Bruce agreed to those terms and so ten years after Gotham first met Batman and Robin, it was time for an entirely new Dynamic Duo's debut. Most notable during Dick's time as the Batman, Dick was called upon to confront the mysterious new Red Hood who had seized control of a biker gang. We had mostly left this guy alone until this point as he was bringing order to a part of Gotham and thus we had considered him an uneasy ally, but his actions had prompted Joker to come out of hiding (an impressive feat as Joker had been mostly off-the-radar since having killed Jason Todd, fearing Batman's retaliation). When Joker did so, Red Hood captured him and then had a GBS camera crew broadcast his beatdown of the Joker, all while threatening to kill the Joker on-air unless Batman himself showed up to save him. Personally, I was surprised how little convincing Bruce had to do to compel Dick to put on the mantle and confront this Red Hood. I don't think I would have done so, but it proved to be just what Dick needed to find the closure he had been looking for to finally put that tension behind him and Bruce. He didn't have to say it, but in his own way, he let Bruce know that he finally understood why Bruce had stopped him from killing Joker that night. The fight with the Red Hood was perhaps the most difficult fight Dick had ever fought up to that point as the Red Hood knew all of Dick's moves and Dick's only physical advantage, his agility, was compromised by the Batsuit. Still, if there's anything I have learned, it's don't count Dick out when the chips are down. The turning point came when Dick did something Bruce would never have done. Dick grabbed one of the guns from Red Hood's holsters and fired three shots into the Red Hood's helmet at point-blank range. The bullets were stopped by the helmet, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell and that distraction gave Dick the moment he needed to get the upper hand and unmask the Red Hood with his lackey bikers watching. Dick was horrified to find that the person he had just shot in the face was none other than Jason Todd, his own brother, back from the dead. In that moment of stunned horror, Jason returned the favor and shot Dick to give himself an opportunity to flee. Dick tried to give chase but a combination of his own injury and the intervention of Azrael, allowed Jason to escape with ease. Still, despite his injury, Dick was able to hold his own against Azrael (mostly on account of Dick not being the Batman that Jean-Paul Valley had been training to fight), but ultimately Azrael would stand over Batman ready to end him. But Jean-Paul Valley would not go through with it after he pulled off Dick's mask and looked him in the eye as Dick passed out from blood loss. Instead, Azrael just took off his own mask, tended to Dick's wound and then walked away. Dick would only learn of Azrael's mercy when he woke up in the recently named Batcave-2, the forward operating base for much of our operations during the Cataclysm. After a week of recovery and having thanked Tim and Cassandra for dragging him back to the base, Dick discovered that he had inspired the bikers once loyal to Red Hood to have changed their name to the 'Sons of Batman' and they were in the process of fighting back against the criminals using the tactics that the Red Hood had taught them. Seeing this, Dick went out and tracked down Jean-Paul Valley and after thanking him for sparing him, Dick asked him why he did. JPV explained that when he unmasked Dick, he had an epiphany and realized that Batman wasn't a man that needed killing, he was a symbol of what one man could do and that made JPV realize that if he killed Batman, he wasn't killing just another man, he was killing what Batman stood for and if he did that, he would ultimately fail the second half of his mission, never being able to truly replace Batman. After hearing this, Dick offered JPV a chance to help others embrace the concept of Batman and asked him to lead the Sons of Batman and work together with him to win back Gotham. Eager to find redemption for his part in the Cataclysm, Jean-Paul Valley agreed. Together with his brand new Robin and Batgirl, Dick joined up the Sons of Batman, the Birds of Prey, and the GCPD to fight back against the League of Assassins and various other criminals entities to bring Gotham away from the edge of extinction. This in turn, allowed the combined relief efforts of the Wayne Foundation and LuthorCare to enter the city with U.S. Government support and thus end the League of Assassins' plan to destroy our great city. For never having wanted to be Batman, Dick turned out to be damn good at it. Dick wasn't the only one that did the unexpected during that dark and strange time. The night that the bridges reopened was the night I did something I never thought I would do, I made love to Batman. Ew, that sounds weird... Anyway! Dick wore the cowl until Bruce had fully recovered from his Bane-given beating. The moment Bruce was able to throw a batarang, Dick returned to Blüdhaven to go lay down the law as Nightwing.Oracle Files: Dick Grayson (4/6) Nightwing Again: 2009 - 2016 After winning back Gotham and landing himself a rather hot ginger goddess in the process, Dick went back to being Nightwing. But he didn't stay long. Detective Grayson was awarded a medal for his assistance in aiding the GCPD during the Cataclysm, which was something that I'm sure helped him when he asked for a leave of absence shortly after returning to work. Not happy with remaining in Blüdhaven, Dick took advantage of his leave to visit his old pal Victor Stone, who was up in Happy Harbor running his own operation. Dick talked Vic into getting their own team together and the two were able to dig Roy Harper out of the bottom of whatever bottle they had found him in. Dick and Vic offered Roy a place on this team, apologizing to him for all the crap they had put him through when they had rejected his interest in joining the Titans all those years ago and even offered to give Roy a new arm to make up for the one he had lost. But in spite of all that, Roy was not interested in joining up until Dick told them the purpose of the team: to find Jason Todd and bring him back into the fold. That was all Roy needed to hear to sober up in an instant... and thus the Outsiders were formed. After recruiting a few more of Jason's old friends, Dick set up the Outsiders in a bunker that Bruce had Harold build to use as a Batcave in Blüdhaven, but in those early days they didn't use it much as their pursuit of Jason kept them pretty mobile. In that time, Dick and I sort of drifted apart because long distance relationships don't really work, but that was a small price to pay in order to have Jason brought back to us. When they finally managed to find Jason and bring him back, there was a lot of tension between Jason and Dick from their last encounter and so Dick turned command of the Outsiders over to Vic, who in turn gave leadership to Roy as Victor had been asked to reboot the Titans program. Roy was probably the best choice to lead the crew in those days as Roy was the only one who was able to effectively stop Jason from storming out. Once Jason had some time to see what Dick was doing as Nightwing, Jason approached Dick one night when he was out on patrol and the two finally put the past behind them as much as brothers with their personalities could ever do. Hell, they even cemented their newfound brotherly dynamic by boosting the Batmobile and taking it out for Big Belly Burger. Dick's Batmobile privileges wouldn't be suspended for long though as Dick would be called back into action as Batman from time to time when Bruce was called away from Gotham on long assignments with the Justice League or when he needed to relieve suspicion that Bruce Wayne and Batman were one and the same, or during the launching of "Batman, Incorporated" when Bruce Wayne held a press conference and had need of Batman, Robin, and Batgirl to attend. This turned into an extended vacation from "Nightwing" for Dick, as this was the same time that the Anti-Christ (...Damian. Damn autocorrect, again) was starting out as Robin and Bruce realized that Dick was better suited to curb the hellion's bloodlust than he was; because let's face it, Dick is awesome... and sexy as hell. Speaking of Dick's charm, it was during that time that Starfire returned to Earth. She crash landed in Gotham Bay and like a fool, I sent Dick and Damian to investigate the crash. When Dick opened up the hatch to Starfire's ship and found her there, she was panicking and unable to understand his instructions as her ability to speak English had faded from her memory in her absence. In order to help assure her she was safe, he unmasked himself and not having any way of knowing that Dick and I were a couple, Starfire quickly kissed him to regain the ability to communicate that she was stuck. See... Look. Proof that I'm over this whole thing between her and me. I realize why she kissed him and I hold no ill will toward her... but Dick on the other hand? After saving Starfire from her crash, Dick's brain was a bit scrambled from the shock to his brain from whatever weird effect Tamaranean kisses have so I forgive him for not telling her that he and I were a thing. I mean, technically we had broken up over a stupid, silly argument. Technically, he was dating Bridget Clancy just before Starfire's return and I had been on a date or two with Teddy, but Dick and I had plans to get together to see a movie together and discuss getting back together and once again, Starfire derailed those plans. Unintentionally, I know... but still. Anyway, over it! So, Dick and Koriand'r got back together and before Dick realized it, the two were a couple again. Agent 37: 2016 - Present After Bruce went missing for a while, I think Dick became afraid that he might one day actually have to become Batman and that thought scared him to the very core. Once he learned that Bruce was alive and well, Dick decided to make a deal with Talia al Ghul to get himself a magical talisman that would conceal his identity as Dick Grayson. Dick then began making plans to infiltrate ARGUS, exactly why, I'm still not certain as Dick has never been up front with me... or even Starfire. When he tried to tell Starfire about his plans, the two had an argument and broke up. Somehow, Dick roped me in and despite all the secrecy, he convinced me to go along with his crazy plan and seduced me into working up a foolproof cover identity for one Freddie Dinardo. Using this as his new identity and taking another leave of absence from the BPD under the ruse of a European backpacking trip, Dick joined ARGUS. The only real problem in Dick's plan was timing. Helena Bertinelli and Andrea Beaumont had been conducting their own secret assignment and Helena used her access to my servers to discover the details on Dick's undercover operation and they decided to derail it and put Dick's own life in danger to follow a lead in their own investigation into the Court of Owls. It's a long and complicated story but Helena had become captured by Waller and though Dick was willing to risk his entire cover to rescue her, she instead betrayed him. Not only did they kidnap Dick but they also took his talisman and lied to him about needing him to pose as William Cobb (who is actually Dick's great-great grandfather or some such... The lives we lead) in Arkham for me! Yeah... I'm really not happy with Helena using Dick's love for me against him. She and I are going to have words one day... Anyway, so after Dick did his best to cool his heels in Arkham for a while, he tried to reach out for rescue when he found out that Waller had stolen the Phantom Zone Generator from the Fortress of Solitude and wanted to use him as a lab rat. Unfortunately, Helena had tampered with my system and thus all of Dick's pleas for rescue were secluded into a special partition. Eventually, Dick would be rescued from an unlikely source: Deathstroke. The League of Assassins were breaking Ra's al Ghul and other key members of the League out of prison and having mistaken Dick for William Cobb, Slade Wilson let Dick tag along... until Slade shot Dick once the deception was revealed. But as Ra's al Ghul had made a decree that Dick was not to be killed, Slade kidnapped Dick and he was taken back to the Assassins' camp for treatment. There Dick apparently made peace with Ra's al Ghul and was released to return to Gotham. Having a new outlook on life, Dick came to his senses and proposed to me. But wouldn't you know it, the moment my life seems to be working is the moment I got to go and get cancer. Well, I eventually said yes, even though Dick's constant nagging me to go see Ra's al Ghul to use a Lazarus Pit is getting annoying. Oh, well... I look forward to spending whatever little time I have left on this Earth in the arms of this man.Deluxe Oracle File: Dick Grayson Threat Assessment Resources * Acrobatics: My boy Grayson is a prodigious natural athlete and master acrobat, possessing a peak human level of agility/acrobatic skills. I truly believe he is the greatest human acrobat. He is one of only three people in the world I know who can pull off a quadruple flip. * Computer Hacking: A boy after my own heart, Dick's no Oracle or Tim Drake, but I've taught him enough that he is skilled enough to hack most personal and government computers with enough time. * Disguise: It's all part of the basic bat-training package. Dick is skilled enough in the art of disguise and impersonation to convincingly infiltrate criminal organizations and does so often as a means of gathering intelligence. * Driving: Dick knows how to handle motorcycles and most other wheeled vehicles with expert finesse. He's not the best motorcyclist I've seen as I know Black Canary, but Dick definitely looks good behind the wheel of his souped-up muscle car, the Night Car. I'm sorry, Dick, I love you... I really do, but that name totally sucks. * Escapology: Due to his training with Batman, he possesses extreme skill in escapology. Dick's shown himself able to escape a maze before Kid Flash could and was even able to use a Tibetan Mind Technique that Zatanna taught him to escape from mind control. * Firearms: Grayson is also skilled with firearms, as he was trained by Batman to know how to handle them... but not to use them. Dick further developed this skill as a cop, scoring the marksmanship award in the academy. Though he doesn't use such weapons as Nightwing, Dick's day job does require he carry a gun. As the daughter of a cop myself, I understand that Dick is trained to use lethal force when necessary. To be a cop, he had to come to terms with that reality and he once had to take the life of suspect to save the life of Detective Amy Rohrbach. * Indomitable Will: Like his mentor, Grayson has a very strong will. He is able to resist Scarecrow's potent fear toxins, resist and overcome mind control from Brother Blood, and according to Hal Jordan, Dick's presence at Battle of Alcatraz had put him on the short list of candidates to succeed the Green Lantern, Abin Sur and Hal was only chosen over Dick due to Hal being right there to receive Abin Sur's final instructions. I wonder what would have happened if Hal hadn't been so willful? Actually, no, let's not think about that. We already know Dick has no hang-ups about shacking up with alien princesses. * Intimidation: He is skilled enough to get Scarecrow to talk and, during his time as Batman, was able to contain a riot in Arkham Asylum only by dropping down amidst the inmates and glaring at them. * Investigation: Maybe not on par with the likes of Bruce Wayne or Tim, but Dick ain't no dummy. He has a vast knowledge of different fields that make him one of BPD's best detectives. Once Dick was able to solve a riddle by the Riddler before Batman himself could figure it out (though that might be because Dick and I were familiar with the video game that Bruce had never heard of). Hell, I've seen Dick solve 4 cases during a taped episode of "America's Most Wanted" over breakfast. As a mundane detective, Dick's also shown himself capable of solving a homicide case that went unsolved for 28 years. * Leadership: I think this (and his agility) is where Dick has the edge on Bruce. Dick is a brilliant and experienced leader with superlative team skills, having served as a leader to the Titans, the Outsiders, and even the Justice League. Additionally, Dick's efforts to remain in contact with other heroes makes him a master at rallying, unifying, and inspiring the superhero community. * Martial Arts: Grayson is a master martial artist, having studied under Batman. His fighting style has an emphasis on Aikido and Escrima. He is proficient in various martial arts such as Boxing, Capoeira, Hapkido, Judo, Ninjitsu, Savate, Taijiquan, and Wing Chun. * Multilingualism: Having had the finest education as Bruce Wayne's ward, Grayson speaks fluent English, French, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, German, Swahili, Mandarin, Cantonese, and is possibly fluent in other languages. He has some knowledge of the alien languages of Tamaranean and Kryptonian. * Peak Physical Conditioning: Due to his training with Batman, Dick Grayson possesses peak athletic strength and endurance. He has displayed peak human strength, agility, reflexes, and endurance because of his training at a young age. ** Strength: Nightwing possesses enough strength to break Killer Croc's arm, throw KGBeast into a dumpster and leave a dent, throw a refrigerator, and use a bed as a weapon... Uh, that last one sounded dirtier than I intended. Dick has also been able to damage Blockbuster barehanded when he's pissed off. I feel a bit ashamed to admit it, but I don't know how much Dick can actually bench-press anymore. I guess my mind is on other things when I watch him do his exercise routine. ** Agility: As I said earlier, Dick can do a quadruple backflip. His agility also enables him to have the confidence at heights that make Starfire nervous for him. ** Speed: Dick Grayson possesses peak human speed, able to outpace Batman easily. ** Reflexes: Dick possesses enough skill to evade gunfire if he has enough distance and isn't caught flatfooted. ** Endurance: Dick is able to go for 4 days straight with no sleep and is capable of holding his breath for 7 minutes. I could go on... ** Durability: He is able to withstand attacks from Blockbuster, who possesses immense strength. * Stealth: Dick is capable of breaching high-security facilities without being detected. He can even sneak up on Batman on occasion. Grayson is also skilled enough to even sneak away and keep hidden from Speedsters. * Swordsmanship: Grayson used to constantly beat Roy Harper in sword fights when the two were teens, despite Roy having been taught by the superior fencer. * Throwing: Grayson is skilled in throwing modified Shuriken (Wing-Dings) to hit thugs at a great distance with his eyes closed, despite occasionally giving them head-starts. Dick is also talented at disarming people with such weapons... though his skills with the standard batarang have gotten a bit rusty as evidence by his frustration when he has to fill in with Batman and can't stop complaining about their aerodynamics. * Weaponry: He has displayed skilled with various weapons, most notably his escrima sticks. * Nightwing Suit: Nightwing's current costume is made of a version of a fire-resistant, triple-weave Kevlar-lined material. It is an excellent protection against damage, and it's also electrically insulated. Instead of relying on Batman's tried and true black cape for stealth, the suit is light sensitive, darkening when there is more light in the area. The current costume has a stylized blue "wing" across his shoulders. Nightwing's costume is tailored specifically to his unique style of crime-fighting. As such, his costume has fewer body-armor inlays than Batman's, anticipating a decreased need for shock-absorption and an increased capacity for motion ("Move more, get hit less." is what he likes to say). A caveat of this configuration can be exploited by capable fighters who are both fast and strong, such as Superman. Should Nightwing need to engage an enemy who is capable of exploiting this weakness, he has supplemental body-armor overlays which he can attach to his gauntlets, his mask, his shoulders, and boots. * Batsuit: As Batman, Dick used a more modern, sleeker design of the Batsuit, featuring only two gauntlet blades and a separated Kevlar plates. The suit is actually a modified suit of Bruce's from his early years. * Night Car: Dick has his own Batmobile of sorts with convertible chassis that enables it to be disguised it as any similarly sized vehicle such as a taxi cab, a police car or a sports car. It houses a 2014 KordTech racing engine, automatic transmission and all wheel drive, dual batteries and puncture resistant tires. The car is not only bulletproof but also bullet absorbent in order to prevent stray ricochets from hitting innocent bystanders. It's not as nice as the Batmobile, but Dick's ride has a much better sound system. * Wingcycle: Nightwing also has his own personalized model of the Batcycle, which he refers to as the "Wingcycle". To accommodate me, Dick made sure the Wingcycle can be equipped with a passenger sidecar. * Redbird: Not owned by Dick anymore, but Dick did have a motorcycle during his time as Robin which he called 'Redbird'. He has since given this Jason, then to Tim and Stephanie, and then to Damian who is the bike's current owner. Weaknesses * Redheads: Dick has an admitted weakness for redheads. Something both Koriand'r and I may have exploited a time or two. Trivia and Notes Trivia * Dick actually met Tim Drake when both of them were younger. It was this meeting that actually allowed Tim to deduce Bruce's identity as Batman. * Dick's parents left him a trust fund that Lucius Fox later turned into a small fortune. Although it is not comparable with Bruce Wayne's wealth, it has been enough for maintaining his Nightwing equipment; for purchasing the rights to Haly's Circus, saving Dick's former home from financial troubles; and for secretly buying the apartment building at 1013 Parkthorne Avenue in Blüdhaven. * When asked who his best friend is, Dick usually says 'Alfred'. * Dick's parents were killed on April 27th, 1998. * Nightwing joined the Justice League of America in 2006 nominated by Batman. Notes * Dick's approach to lethal force: Crippling is not lethal. Realistically speaking, you risk killing someone if you punch them. In the heat of combat, no matter how well-trained you are, there is a risk that your blow lands in such a way that it has an effect that you didn't foresee. This happens in the comics, too. Batman didn't intend to knock the original Red Hood into that vat of chemicals (some writers explore a different take on this) or while fighting someone is accidentally impaled on a piece of rebar or something like that. Combat is volatile. If Nightwing is fighting with batons and people are trying to kill him, no matter how well trained he is, if his adrenaline is going and this is a life or death fight and someone pulls a knife or a gun on him, he might lose a bit of his coordination. Adrenaline has that effect to dampen your fine motor skills in favor of your gross motor skills. Also, in Earth-27, my approach to Nightwing is different than Batman. Dick Grayson's day job is a cop. He carries a gun. He is trained to use lethal force when necessary. To be a cop, he had to come to terms with that reality. He might not carry a gun as Nightwing, but if he has to use lethal force to resolve a situation and save lives, he'll do so as a last resort. It is one of the reasons he kept the Outsiders around, is so that there would be some team that would do the things that Justice League couldn't because of political reasons. Also, part of Dick's reason for becoming Nightwing was because Batman refused to kill the Joker for shooting Barbara. Also, in the comics, Dick has killed. He strangled the Joker to death in The Last Laugh (Batman resuscitated the Joker) and Dick let Blockbuster die, without trying to save him. True, Dick felt awful for what he had done both times, but there is some precedent. You don't have to approve or even like this approach. Just explaining it so you at least understand why I choose the directions I do. He jacked up one guy's knee in this VOX Box. I just want to make it clear. The guy will walk funny, but he's not quadriplegic or anything that serious. There's other instances of this stuff happening to a supervillain in Earth-27. Black Canary gave Penguin his limp. Green Arrow is insinuated to have killed Prometheus. Batman knocked Red Hood into a vat of chemicals and that guy may or may not have become the Joker (in-universe, no one has made that connection except hints that Jason Todd may know that truth as he became the Red Hood as a means of drawing the Joker out of hiding), Huntress gave Black Mask his scarred face, Superman has literally torn Brainiac apart several times, We haven't really seen Nightwing's villains. For instance, Blockbuster has been mentioned numerous times in VOX Boxes, but has yet to make his E27 debut. Nightwing has left a scar on a fellow hero, though... or rather, Dick as Batman did, when he fought Dumas/Dumah/Red Hood/Jason Todd in 2008. One of Jason's facial scars was caused by Dick in that fight when he broke Jason's mask and revealed his identity. I understand that's not a crippling injury, but it is a permanent one.Oracle Files: Katie Pierce * In Earth-27, he's been Batman multiple times. In Earth-27's version of Knightfall & No Man's Land, he became Batman (not Jean-Paul Valley) and debuted a new dynamic duo with Tim as his Robin. After that, he regularly took up the Batman mantle whenever Bruce was out of Gotham for extended periods of time due to Justice League adventures or investigations that required him to travel (like a lot of League of Assassins stuff). Then in the case of the launch of Batman, Incorporated... yes, it was only a few months at that time as well. For the last eight years in Earth-27 (since Knightfall happened around 2007 in Earth-27), Dick Grayson has probably averaged like a few month's worth of nights wearing the Batman cape and cowl per year, with 2007 and 2014 being two years where he was Batman more often than he was Nightwing. Links and References * Appearances of Dick Grayson * Character Gallery: Dick Grayson * Earth-27 Presents: Nightwing - YouTube Category:Characters Category:Justice League Members Category:ARGUS Category:Bat Family Category:Birds of Prey Members Category:Titans Alumni Category:Outsiders Members Category:First Generation Titans Category:Batman, Inc. 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